Many forms of activity may result in injury to ligaments within a human ankle. The inversion ankle sprain is the single most common sports injury. Within the ankle, an anterior talofibular (ATF) ligament is commonly sprained and most severely injured. Pain and swelling related to this injury limits function and delays return to activity.
Traditional remedies for an ankle sprain have included a variety of taping techniques for the ankle. However, such taping requires the skill and care of a trained individual for application, and even with such skill and care, taping techniques offer marginal support and may cause damage to other portions of the foot may occur. For example, taping may transfer undue loads onto the shaft of the 5th metatarsal, resulting in fractures. As an alternative to taping, braces with rigid sides or stiffeners have been offered. However, these braces suffer serious drawbacks including user discomfort, bulk, marginal support or prevention of re-injury, unduly limited range of motion, difficulty in donning, cost, and so forth.